True Crime... on the page

What are the finest true crime books? The genre is so wide, the list is exhaustive. I can't rank these in any order - but they are my favourite few. I'd love to hear yours.

I want more than crime from my true crime literature. In what ways do the events on the page shine a light on society? How much research has gone into the book? What craft is displayed in the writing? How is the genre elevated somehow? These are my favourites, I’d love to know yours - am always after a good recommendation! Write and let me know.

People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry

Beautifully nuanced, wonderfully researched with incredible access. The Times journalist goes into the Tokyo’s underbelly to follow how British woman Lucie Blackman was murdered. It is also an incredible study in how grief impacts a family, particularly a family which is already broken. When I came to write my first true crime book (To Hunt A Killer), I was looking for inspiration how to create a readable, accessible work which was also intelligent and moving. This was the book which inspired me the most.

An Officer and A Spy by Robert Harris

I think we can loosely call this True Crime. Robert Harris (Fatherland, The Ghost, Enigma) was at the peak of his powers when he wrote this fictionalised account of France’s Dreyfus Affair (1892-1906) in which a Jewish army captain was convicted of passing secrets to German agents. Two trials, a country split in two. It’s a long, intelligent and beautifully-written thriller.

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher by Kate Summerscale

I often drive past the beautiful West Country village in which this is set. Rode (spelt Road in the book) saw a notorious murder in 1860. A Scotland Yard detective is sent to investigate. He enters this world of seeming rural respectability only to find deep-rooted jealousies, scheming servants and secrets. Wonderfully-written.

Catching a Serial Killer by Stephen Fulcher and A Killer’s Confession by Karen Edwards

Okay - some self interest here. As a TV reporter I covered the Christopher Halliwell killings of Becky Godden-Edwards and Sian O’Callaghan from his dramatic arrest in 2011. Why did an experienced detective Steve Fulcher break arrest guidelines to gain a confession from a serial killer? What happened in that dramatic moment which passed between killer and cop? And how did Fulcher go from being feted as a hero, only to see his gamble explode - ending his career. And what did this mean for the inspirational Karen Edwards, Becky’s mother? A policeman had found her missing daughter, yet the compromised confession meant she herself had to fight tooth and claw for justice. Both fast-paced thrillers with big moral debates at their heart. An incredible story if it were fiction. Even more amazing that this is a true story. Dramatised by ITV as ‘A Confession.’

The First Detective, The Life and Revolutionary Times of Vidocq by James Morton

James Morton made his name writing about post-War gangland London. But for this wonderful 2004 book, he focused on the soldier-turned-prisoner-turned detective who revolutionised policing in revolutionary France - and the world. Vidocq inspired Dupin, Holmes and Lupin among many other fictional detectives. This book takes you right back into this time. In turns intelligent, amusing and inspirational. Want to listen to James? Become a paid subscriber to Behind the Crimes for an exclusive podcast interview.

A Forger’s Tale by Shaun Greenhalgh

A surprising comment for any true crime book - particularly written by a convict. But this is an absolute joy to read. Shaun Greenhalgh is the self-taught artist who created fake masterpieces (paintings, sculptures and ancient ‘artefacts’) from his Lancashire garage. He did it for a love of art, eventually enlisting his ageing father as an accomplice. Some of the world’s most famous galleries and museums were taken in by Greenhalgh. He seemed motivated not by money but fuelled by a lack of recognition by the establishment in his own abilities. Now out of prison, Greenhalgh is an artist in his own right. This book is acerbic, funny and warm. I would love to get him on the podcast one day.

Rex vs Edith Thompson: A Tale of Two Murders by Laura Thompson

What a story: The murder/scandal that shocked 1920s England. A femme fatale, her young lover and her cuckolded husband. But when Freddy Bywaters killed cheated husband Percy Thompson, why did the murdered man’s wife also face the gallows? Did Edith Thompson incite Freddy? Or was he acting on his own will? What importance were the love letters when read in court? And why did women seem to lack any compassion for Edith? Laura Thompson was rightly shortlisted for a Gold Dagger award for this story that says as much about English society as it does about the crime. Want to hear Laura speak on the podcast about the case? You can here.

Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon

I love David Simon’s writing - the brutal simplicity of his journalistic prose in both his books and screenplays (The Wire, for example). It’s hard to think that this account is more than three decades old. This book does what every book should - it transports you to that world: in this case a cop precinct in Baltimore, MD. Harsh, heart-breaking, heart-warming. I wonder what these streets are like today?

I Survived by Victoria Cilliers

I watched this story unfold, sitting through the drama of this trial. How could a woman survive a double-parachute malfunction, fall 4,000 feet - and survive? But when Vicky Cilliers was told police thought her husband, Emile, had sabotaged her rig, surely that was too far-fetched? Yes, she had doubts about his fidelity. And there was also that strange matter of the leaking gas valve days earlier. An extreme case of coercive control, told from a victim’s perspective. I hope Vicky is more accepting of the police and their investigation than when she wrote this book, but it is an incredible insight to an extraordinary case.

Goldfinger and Me by Marnie Palmer and Tom Morgan

Britain’s wealthiest gangster, John ‘Goldfinger’ Palmer was was richer than the Queen, the tabloids said. A man who smelted Brinks-Mat gold and made millions, before fleecing thousands of unsuspecting people from his timeshare scams. In this account his widow describes what it was like living with this charming tyrant. A man intoxicated by money, ego and cocaine. In other writers’ hands this would be a tough sell, but journalist Tom Morgan is able to show Marnie in a sympathetic light.

Good Cop, Bad War by Neil Woods and JS Rafaeli

If any book has made me think twice about the West’s failure to tackle its drugs crisis, this is it. Neil Woods was a pioneering undercover officer working deep in gangland Britain. Part-entertaining memoir, part-thought-provoking thesis it shows the lengths and dangers to which officers would go to expose some of Britain’s most notorious drugs gangs, and the futility of this terrible game of narcotics whack-a-mole.